Black Sheep
Atlanta, Georgia | Film Short
Drama, LGBTQ
Following a transwoman on her journey back to her hostile home, Black Sheep explores topics such as transphobia, childhood sexual assault, what it means to be the black sheep of a family, and who truly deserves that title.
Black Sheep
Atlanta, Georgia | Film Short
Drama, LGBTQ
1 Campaigns | California, United States
Green Light
This campaign raised $8,250 for pre-production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
56 supporters | followers
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Following a transwoman on her journey back to her hostile home, Black Sheep explores topics such as transphobia, childhood sexual assault, what it means to be the black sheep of a family, and who truly deserves that title.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Black Sheep is the story of a black trans woman, estranged from her religious family, who goes to say her goodbyes to her late grandmother, where the chaos of her presence reveals ugly family secrets.
A Note from the Writer & Director
I can’t speak for other communities—although I’m sure this is unfortunately common—but one thing I’ve learned about black families is that secrets run deep. I love talking to the elders in my family and learning about their life growing up. But often during these talks I find out that there is tragedy that marks their past. Unfortunately these tragedies are usually well known amongst their generation but are ignored for the sake of “keeping the peace,” and the people who have caused these hurts are still welcomed into the family. Sadly, this grace doesn’t often translate to other types of family members. Queer family members are often purposefully ostracized or feel the need to leave due to rampant homophobia and transphobia. This is a double standard that has haunted me, and I wanted to explore it in Black Sheep. Family is family, for good and bad. It’s contradictory and messy, yet despite how fractured everyone can be from one another, it’s hard to fully divorce the love and loyalty you once felt for each other.
The Heart of the Story
With encouragement from her girlfriend, AYANA INNINGS attends the funeral of her grandmother. Her presence causes a stir amongst her aunts and mom, SHERYL. But when Ayana's grandfather, GERALD, corners Ayana while she is leaving the bathroom, Sheryl reveals to Ayana that Gerald had abused her [Sheryl] when she was young.
This is a story about a mother and daughter.
Why This Matters
Black Sheep explores topics such as transphobia, childhood sexual assault, what it means to be the black sheep of a family, and who truly deserves that title. According to a recent study by Just Like Us, a UK based charitable organization, nearly half of LGBTQ+ young adults are estranged from at least one family member. With a trans protagonist, we see in Black Sheep how some families will gladly kick out LGBTQ+ family members while continually embracing the sexual predators in their family tree. This short film will be focused on this phenomenon in a black, Christian family--a perspective not often scene in trans cinema.
The Location
With the majority of the film being set in a Southern old baptist church, this film will be entrenched in black Southern Christian church culture–big church hats, netted fascinators, everyone a little damp with sweat. The production design and costuming for this film will be one of its focal points. I want this film to be authentic to the culture.
AYANA INNINGS
The “black sheep” of her family. She’s been kicked out years ago but has thrived without the weight of her transphobic family holding her back. The only two people who she still cares for are her deceased grandmother, and her mother, Sheryl. Despite Sheryl hurting her deeply when she stopped talking to her after she transitioned, she still feels a sense of loyalty and protection towards her. And when she discovers Sheryl’s secret, she will do anything to protect her mother.
SHERYL INNINGS
Ayana’s mother. Sheryl prioritizes family over her own happiness, and it’s left her feeling like a shell of a person. While she’s “happy” with her family, it feels like it’s slowly eating her alive. When it comes to her relationship with Ayana, it feels like a pulsing wound between the two of them. There’s still love there, but also too much hurt to start anew.
GERALD
Ayana's grandfather and Sheryl's father. To most outsiders, it's easy to view Gerald as an easy-going, likable man. But the truth is that he's a reprehensible sexual predator and serial abuser.
KENDRA
Ayana’s girlfriend and emotional support. She’s proof that despite Ayana’s broken relationship with her family she is far from being alone.
The Budget
Our Main Goal
The production team behind Black Sheep is trying to raise $10,000. We need at least $8,000 to have our film green lit.
Our Stretch Goals
If we reach...
- $15,000 - We can pay our production crew for their hard work on set
- $20,000 - We can pay our pre-production crew for their efforts with fundraising & planning production, and we can also properly pay our post-production team for editing, sound mixing, and coloring
- $25,000 - We can organize a private in-person screening for both sides of the cost for all of our cast and crew!
Our Production Timeline
- December: Fundraising
- January - April: Pre-production [finding out crew and the rest of our cast, experimenting with the look of our film, finalizing out shoot dates, scheduling travel]
- May: Filming
- June - July: Post-production [editing the film, coloring, private screenings]
After Production
The team behind Black Sheep plans on going through the festival circuit before it becomes widely available to the public.
Thank You for Reading
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Festival Fees
Costs $800
Making the film is only half of the battle. Once the film is fully shot and edited, then it's time for to submit to festivals!
Post-Production Costs
Costs $1,500
We want to properly pay our editors and music composer for their hours and hours of hard work.
Costuming and Set Design
Costs $650
Inspired by Southern black funeral culture, Black Sheep's costume and set design will be authentic and carefully crafted.
Lights, Camera...Sound!
Costs $2,500
To make a movie you need the great equipment, and we want the best cameras, lighting, and microphones (within our budget).
Cast
Costs $2,100
Our cast is very important to us, and it's very important to us to pay them for their hard work.
Crafty and Food
Costs $750
We need to feed our cast and crew.
Location and Travel Fees
Costs $700
With a crew based in Los Angeles and Atlanta, we need to pay travel fees for our director and cast.
U-haul and Gas
Costs $500
We need to pay to transport equipment and pay for gas for on-the-day travel.
Miscellaneous Costs
Costs $500
Filming a film often comes with surprises! And in case some cost comes up last minute, we want to put some money aside.
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
EVA REIGN is AYANA INNINGS
An award-winning actress, journalist, writer and overall storyteller dedicated to equality and change.
Originally from St. Louis, Missouri, Eva has made her mark in film as the lead in Billy Porter’s directorial debut, Anything’s Possible from Amazon MGM Studios and as correspondent and producer for “Transnational” from Vice News.
DIRECTOR, WRITER & PRODUCER - Wy'Kia Frelot
y’Kia Frelot is a writer and director currently based in Los Angeles, whose narratives often focus on black women and the families that surround them. Raised in Maryland and Georgia, Wy'Kia developed a passion for filmmaking and storytelling at a young age. Some of Wy'Kia's favourite influences are Park Chan-Wook's The Handmaiden, Kathleen Collin's Losing Ground, and Jordan Peele's Get Out.
PRODUCER - Ariel Brown
Ariel “birdfoot” Brown is an award-winning filmmaker and writer whose work is rooted in cultural-personal identity and memory, spirit expression, and uplifting voices left to the shadows. Being primarily rooted in documentary, Ariel’s work deals with the intimate, humanized unfoldings of people, tracing memory, family history, and social standards to get to the root of the person's narrative at hand. Her ability to weave worlds through words and images gently guides the heart of her stories from the shadows into the light, to serve as reflective medicine for those who experience them. She is the winner for Best Experimental Film of the 2021 Georgia State University Film Festival for her project “history | alchemy | evolution,” a slip through time that calls on Black cultural expressions and their multitudes of adaptations through countless lifetimes.
PRODUCER - Julia Griffin
ulia C. Griffin (she/her) is an independent producer & filmmaker with a deep passion for elevating underrepresented voices. She is always looking out for fresh and exciting visions with a unique voice that firmly demand empathy.
PRODUCER - Jasmine Brimsayd
Jasmine Brimsmayd (She/They) is an actor, writer, and filmmaker. Jasmine is deeply passionate about the many facets of storytelling. Whether through spoken text or the visual poetry of the film, Jasmine aims to tell stories that have historically not been told. Jasmine’s mission as an artist is a focus on the intersectionality of Queerness and Blackness, and the space of possibility from between one word and another, one phrase and another, one gesture and another, and the power in specificity of those chosen things from that place of possibility.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Black Sheep is the story of a black trans woman, estranged from her religious family, who goes to say her goodbyes to her late grandmother, where the chaos of her presence reveals ugly family secrets.
A Note from the Writer & Director
I can’t speak for other communities—although I’m sure this is unfortunately common—but one thing I’ve learned about black families is that secrets run deep. I love talking to the elders in my family and learning about their life growing up. But often during these talks I find out that there is tragedy that marks their past. Unfortunately these tragedies are usually well known amongst their generation but are ignored for the sake of “keeping the peace,” and the people who have caused these hurts are still welcomed into the family. Sadly, this grace doesn’t often translate to other types of family members. Queer family members are often purposefully ostracized or feel the need to leave due to rampant homophobia and transphobia. This is a double standard that has haunted me, and I wanted to explore it in Black Sheep. Family is family, for good and bad. It’s contradictory and messy, yet despite how fractured everyone can be from one another, it’s hard to fully divorce the love and loyalty you once felt for each other.
The Heart of the Story
With encouragement from her girlfriend, AYANA INNINGS attends the funeral of her grandmother. Her presence causes a stir amongst her aunts and mom, SHERYL. But when Ayana's grandfather, GERALD, corners Ayana while she is leaving the bathroom, Sheryl reveals to Ayana that Gerald had abused her [Sheryl] when she was young.
This is a story about a mother and daughter.
Why This Matters
Black Sheep explores topics such as transphobia, childhood sexual assault, what it means to be the black sheep of a family, and who truly deserves that title. According to a recent study by Just Like Us, a UK based charitable organization, nearly half of LGBTQ+ young adults are estranged from at least one family member. With a trans protagonist, we see in Black Sheep how some families will gladly kick out LGBTQ+ family members while continually embracing the sexual predators in their family tree. This short film will be focused on this phenomenon in a black, Christian family--a perspective not often scene in trans cinema.
The Location
With the majority of the film being set in a Southern old baptist church, this film will be entrenched in black Southern Christian church culture–big church hats, netted fascinators, everyone a little damp with sweat. The production design and costuming for this film will be one of its focal points. I want this film to be authentic to the culture.
AYANA INNINGS
The “black sheep” of her family. She’s been kicked out years ago but has thrived without the weight of her transphobic family holding her back. The only two people who she still cares for are her deceased grandmother, and her mother, Sheryl. Despite Sheryl hurting her deeply when she stopped talking to her after she transitioned, she still feels a sense of loyalty and protection towards her. And when she discovers Sheryl’s secret, she will do anything to protect her mother.
SHERYL INNINGS
Ayana’s mother. Sheryl prioritizes family over her own happiness, and it’s left her feeling like a shell of a person. While she’s “happy” with her family, it feels like it’s slowly eating her alive. When it comes to her relationship with Ayana, it feels like a pulsing wound between the two of them. There’s still love there, but also too much hurt to start anew.
GERALD
Ayana's grandfather and Sheryl's father. To most outsiders, it's easy to view Gerald as an easy-going, likable man. But the truth is that he's a reprehensible sexual predator and serial abuser.
KENDRA
Ayana’s girlfriend and emotional support. She’s proof that despite Ayana’s broken relationship with her family she is far from being alone.
The Budget
Our Main Goal
The production team behind Black Sheep is trying to raise $10,000. We need at least $8,000 to have our film green lit.
Our Stretch Goals
If we reach...
- $15,000 - We can pay our production crew for their hard work on set
- $20,000 - We can pay our pre-production crew for their efforts with fundraising & planning production, and we can also properly pay our post-production team for editing, sound mixing, and coloring
- $25,000 - We can organize a private in-person screening for both sides of the cost for all of our cast and crew!
Our Production Timeline
- December: Fundraising
- January - April: Pre-production [finding out crew and the rest of our cast, experimenting with the look of our film, finalizing out shoot dates, scheduling travel]
- May: Filming
- June - July: Post-production [editing the film, coloring, private screenings]
After Production
The team behind Black Sheep plans on going through the festival circuit before it becomes widely available to the public.
Thank You for Reading
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Festival Fees
Costs $800
Making the film is only half of the battle. Once the film is fully shot and edited, then it's time for to submit to festivals!
Post-Production Costs
Costs $1,500
We want to properly pay our editors and music composer for their hours and hours of hard work.
Costuming and Set Design
Costs $650
Inspired by Southern black funeral culture, Black Sheep's costume and set design will be authentic and carefully crafted.
Lights, Camera...Sound!
Costs $2,500
To make a movie you need the great equipment, and we want the best cameras, lighting, and microphones (within our budget).
Cast
Costs $2,100
Our cast is very important to us, and it's very important to us to pay them for their hard work.
Crafty and Food
Costs $750
We need to feed our cast and crew.
Location and Travel Fees
Costs $700
With a crew based in Los Angeles and Atlanta, we need to pay travel fees for our director and cast.
U-haul and Gas
Costs $500
We need to pay to transport equipment and pay for gas for on-the-day travel.
Miscellaneous Costs
Costs $500
Filming a film often comes with surprises! And in case some cost comes up last minute, we want to put some money aside.
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
EVA REIGN is AYANA INNINGS
An award-winning actress, journalist, writer and overall storyteller dedicated to equality and change.
Originally from St. Louis, Missouri, Eva has made her mark in film as the lead in Billy Porter’s directorial debut, Anything’s Possible from Amazon MGM Studios and as correspondent and producer for “Transnational” from Vice News.
DIRECTOR, WRITER & PRODUCER - Wy'Kia Frelot
y’Kia Frelot is a writer and director currently based in Los Angeles, whose narratives often focus on black women and the families that surround them. Raised in Maryland and Georgia, Wy'Kia developed a passion for filmmaking and storytelling at a young age. Some of Wy'Kia's favourite influences are Park Chan-Wook's The Handmaiden, Kathleen Collin's Losing Ground, and Jordan Peele's Get Out.
PRODUCER - Ariel Brown
Ariel “birdfoot” Brown is an award-winning filmmaker and writer whose work is rooted in cultural-personal identity and memory, spirit expression, and uplifting voices left to the shadows. Being primarily rooted in documentary, Ariel’s work deals with the intimate, humanized unfoldings of people, tracing memory, family history, and social standards to get to the root of the person's narrative at hand. Her ability to weave worlds through words and images gently guides the heart of her stories from the shadows into the light, to serve as reflective medicine for those who experience them. She is the winner for Best Experimental Film of the 2021 Georgia State University Film Festival for her project “history | alchemy | evolution,” a slip through time that calls on Black cultural expressions and their multitudes of adaptations through countless lifetimes.
PRODUCER - Julia Griffin
ulia C. Griffin (she/her) is an independent producer & filmmaker with a deep passion for elevating underrepresented voices. She is always looking out for fresh and exciting visions with a unique voice that firmly demand empathy.
PRODUCER - Jasmine Brimsayd
Jasmine Brimsmayd (She/They) is an actor, writer, and filmmaker. Jasmine is deeply passionate about the many facets of storytelling. Whether through spoken text or the visual poetry of the film, Jasmine aims to tell stories that have historically not been told. Jasmine’s mission as an artist is a focus on the intersectionality of Queerness and Blackness, and the space of possibility from between one word and another, one phrase and another, one gesture and another, and the power in specificity of those chosen things from that place of possibility.